The man looked suitably chastised and was listening quietly to his assistant sounding off. Turns out she was less business partner and more close friend. "They've given us an extension. But they said they'll be needing their deposit back if you don't come up with something. We can handle losing the money but your reputation, our reputation, will be for shit." "Sorry—" Eli said. Lauren interrupted. "Then you go and do some damn fool thing that leaves you unconscious in the dirt in the sun." "He was in the shade," Riley offered helpfully. Lauren narrowed her gaze at him and Riley took a step back. That this itty-bitty woman who probably didn't top five-four was facing him down was a little bit of a culture shock. Reminded him of Donna actually. "I was with someone," Eli defended himself. "Dumb luck that you were. We organized this shoot so we could make everything easy for you—" "Yeah," Eli said. "Too easy. All those models in their briefs draped over wood was like every single damn cliché in the book." He sounded grumpy but then Riley had experienced being laid up after he was in the fire and it sucked big time.
